Burnsville shooting: Slain suspect was armed with multiple guns and ammo as he held 7 children hostage before killing 3 first responders

Warning: This article contains a recollection of crime and can be triggering to some, readers’ discretion advised.

BURNSVILLE, MINNESOTA: According to bring me the news, the gunman, who held seven children hostage and took his own life after shooting dead three Burnsville officers, was armed with multiple firearms and a significant amount of ammunition. 

During the Burnsville shooting on February 18, two police officers and a paramedic tragically lost their lives. This occurred following their response to a domestic disturbance call from a home in Minnesota. 

Remarkably, seven children, ranging in age from 2 to 15 years old, were present inside the Burnsville residence during the harrowing incident, and fortunately, none of them sustained physical injuries. Further details about the gunman have emerged as the investigation progresses.

What did Criminal Apprehension Superintendent Drew Evans report?

Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension Superintendent Drew Evans described the call for help involving seven children as "very troubling." 

He mentioned that officers tried to negotiate with the person before he started shooting, resulting in the deaths of two officers and the medic.

The suspect, whose identity is unknown, also died during the incident. An autopsy is planned for Monday to determine if he died by his own hand or was shot by officers.

Evans claimed, "We still don't know the exact exchange of gunfire that occurred. Certainly, several officers did return fire. And I'll note that this individual had several guns and large amounts of ammunition and shot at the police officers from multiple positions within the home in that incident.”

He added, “The exact timing and cadence of what occurred will be part of our active investigation as we review video, officers' bodycams, video that might be in the area, conduct interviews and all available evidence to really figure out exactly what occurred in this incident.”

Evans stated that the man shot at officers both inside and outside the home, targeting them from both the second and main levels of the residence.

Evans said, "At least one of the officers were shot inside of the home, the other two that were deceased, we're still piecing together if it was inside or outside of the home, but I can tell you that officers took fire inside of the home and outside of the home,"

Burnsville’s Chief of Police shares about the deceased cops' dedication to their work

Officers Paul Elmstrand and Matthew Ruge, both aged 27, along with fire-medic Adam Finseth, aged 40, were tragically killed in the line of duty.

Finseth was among the SWAT team members who responded to the call. Burnsville Police Sgt. Adam Medlicott sustained non-life-threatening injuries in the shooting and is currently receiving treatment at a local hospital.

Tanya Schwartz, Burnsville's chief of police, expressed, "Our police officers and our fire paramedics, they come to work every day. They do it willingly."

Schwartz added, "They know that they might have to give up their life, for their partners, for someone else. They know they have to give up their life sometime, and they do it anyways and you cannot understand it if you're not in the profession.”

Schwartz said, "Every day we want them to go home to their families. Every day we pray that they go home to their families. And today that's not happening."

"We are all hurting, our officers, our fire department, our families, all of our staff, our community. We're heartbroken. We are going to need time to be together. Please, our families need time to grieve, they need time to be together. We need you to pray for them, that's what we need right now," Schwartz concluded.